Cloud-native applications are built for speed, scale, and flexibility. However, these same qualities make them difficult to secure using traditional methods. That’s because in a cloud-native architecture, workloads are ephemeral, deployments are automated, and infrastructure is defined in code. Security must be able to adapt to this reality.

This is where cloud-native application protection platforms (CNAPPs) come in. CNAPPs unify multiple security capabilities into a single framework designed to secure cloud workloads at every stage—from development through deployment and into runtime. When properly implemented, a CNAPP enables comprehensive and operationally sustainable security.

A complete CNAPP includes four core capabilities: cloud security posture management (CSPM), cloud workload protection (CWP), cloud infrastructure entitlement management (CIEM), and cloud detection and response (CDR). Lacework FortiCNAPP brings these together in a unified platform, enabling detection, prevention, and remediation across the application life cycle and different types of telemetry—from infrastructure configurations to runtime signals.

Here’s how you can use CNAPPs to secure your cloud-native workloads from code to runtime, and how Fortinet helps make that process actionable across any environment.

Secure the Code Before It’s Deployed

The first opportunity to secure cloud-native workloads is in the code itself. Vulnerabilities introduced in Infrastructure-as-Code (IaC), container images, or application libraries can easily propagate into production if left unchecked.

Lacework FortiCNAPP integrates directly with CI/CD pipelines to detect risks in code, templates, and images before deployment. It scans for hardcoded secrets, privilege misconfigurations, unapproved base images, and outdated libraries. Developers then receive feedback inside their toolchains, enabling issues to be fixed quickly without slowing down delivery.

For deeper analysis, FortiDevSec adds static and dynamic testing capabilities to identify insecure functions, logic flaws, or injection risks early in the software development life cycle. Together, these tools ensure that security begins before the first deployment, reducing the likelihood of exploitable code entering the cloud.

Continuously Monitor Configurations and Posture

Even well-written code can become a risk if deployed into a misconfigured environment. Publicly exposed storage buckets, overly permissive IAM roles, and disabled logging are all common—and preventable—errors that attackers frequently exploit.

Fortinet addresses this with the CSPM built into FortiCNAPP. CSPM continuously monitors deployed environments for configuration drift, security policy violations, and non-compliant resource changes. Whether your workloads are in AWS, Azure, GCP, or spread across multiple providers, FortiCNAPP provides centralized visibility and remediation guidance.

This real-time posture monitoring supports common compliance frameworks, enabling your security team to respond before an issue can escalate into a breach.

Protect Workloads at Runtime with Combined Signals

Cloud-native workloads don’t sit still. Containers spin up and down in seconds, serverless functions trigger on demand, and microservices interact across distributed layers. Runtime protection must be designed to operate in this dynamic context.

Lacework FortiCNAPP includes CWP features that monitor the runtime behavior of applications, containers, and serverless workloads. It builds a baseline of normal behavior, detects anomalies, and flags potential compromises, such as unexpected process launches, privilege escalation attempts, or lateral movement between containers.

But FortiCNAPP doesn’t stop at host or container telemetry. It also includes integrated CDR capabilities, analyzing Kubernetes and cloud provider audit logs in real time to detect unauthorized access attempts, privilege misuse, or signs of compromise within the control plane itself. This broader visibility enables detection of threats that agent-based tools might miss, without additional operational overhead.

These complementary signals—from both CWP and CDR—are then combined using Fortinet Composite Alerts to correlate signals across runtime agents and cloud audit logs. This produces high-fidelity alerts with enriched context, enabling your team to detect complex intrusions earlier and respond more precisely. The result is deeper detection coverage with fewer false positives.

Enforce Application-Layer Defense Where It Matters Most

While infrastructure is critical, many cloud-native attacks target the application layer—specifically web applications and APIs. Business logic abuse, injection attacks, and credential stuffing attempts often bypass infrastructure-level controls entirely.

FortiWeb and FortiWeb Cloud advanced WAF and API protections for applications are tightly integrated with FortiCNAPP runtime risk models. This creates an end-to-end defense that understands both the traffic coming in and the behavior of the workload it’s targeting.

By linking WAF insights to your workload telemetry, Fortinet enables better decision-making and faster response. For example, if malicious API behavior is detected and correlates with abnormal activity inside a container, your security team can immediately quarantine the affected workload and block access at the edge.

Automate and Orchestrate the Full Security Life Cycle

Securing workloads from code to runtime is complex, but the right automation can significantly reduce that complexity. FortiCNAPP supports policy-based controls, automated remediation, and integration with FortiSOAR to orchestrate workflows across teams.

When a misconfiguration is detected, FortiCNAPP can trigger corrective actions or open a ticket for the relevant team. If suspicious behavior occurs during runtime, it can also alert, isolate, and correlate the event with prior vulnerabilities or exposure points, providing context for both security and DevOps.

This automation is crucial for scaling cloud security, ensuring that security controls can adapt to changing environments without requiring constant manual oversight.

Build Cloud Security That Moves with You

Securing cloud-native workloads isn’t just about protection—it’s about adaptability. Environments shift. Teams move faster. New services are adopted every day. Fortinet’s CNAPP approach is designed to keep pace with development, providing coverage that evolves in tandem with your infrastructure.

By combining IaC scanning, CSPM, workload runtime protection, WAF, and API security into a single platform, FortiCNAPP helps you secure every layer of your cloud-native stack. More importantly, it enables that security to happen continuously and contextually—from the first line of code to the last packet of production traffic.

source:
https://www.fortinet.com/blog/business-and-technology/cnapp-secures-cloud-native-workloads-from-code-to-runtime